


Against All Odds

by ace_is_ace



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Good Malfoy Family, Good Severus Snape, Lucius Malfoy is a decent parent, M/M, Minor Character Death, Pre-Hogwarts, Rituals, Soulmates, fuck the light/dark binary, honestly they are still literally babies, soulmates that are slightly more mathematically feasible
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2017-03-01
Packaged: 2018-09-01 17:02:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8631748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ace_is_ace/pseuds/ace_is_ace
Summary: From a writing-prompt-s prompt: "Whenever you feel a phantom sensation (pain, itch, etc.), it’s because it’s happening to your soulmate. One day, you feel something you’ve never felt before."
On the night Voldemort goes to the Potters' home, the Malfoys find their son absolutely inconsolable. It only gets worse from there. Will they be able to save young Draco's mysterious soulmate?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt (and others) found at: http://writing-prompt-s.tumblr.com/post/152722656201/whenever-you-feel-a-phantom-sensation-pain-itch
> 
> I've got a few chapters written for this... Longhand, and betwixt my NaNo writing, I'll likely continue this, but I'm marking it done until I type more up.
> 
> Cheers,  
> ace.

The day the Dark Lord fell, or the night, really, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy got exactly no sleep. Draco, who was nearly a year and a half old, had woken after being put to bed long after the early Samhain festivities and preceded to scream for hours. From midnight until 4 in the morning, the new parents struggled to calm their firstborn. It wasn’t until half three that the family healer finally arrived.

Quite miffed at having his celebrations cut short, he was even more miffed to find that absolutely nothing was wrong with the Malfoy heir. Narcissa was unmoving on the subject of asking the Dark Lord for help, and really the only reason it had even come up was because Lucius’ nerves couldn’t handle much more stress. Luckily, Lucius’ wife was as intelligent as she was beautiful and she suggested they contact Severus, which, the boy’s godfather, of course! And so, leaving Narcissa to his son’s mercy, Lucius floo’d his best friend.

His best friend failed to answer. Requiring aid immediately, Lucius floo'd over to Spinner’s End, only to find it empty. Lucius cursed and raised his nearly teary eyes to the (dusty, low) ceiling.

At his wit’s end, he decided to use a location spell, and, recognizing the pull towards a mixed muggle wizarding settlement, he floo'd to the local wizarding friendly tavern in Godric's Hollow.

It was here he found Severus. His poor young friend was apparently attempting to drink himself to death. In retrospect, Lucius would realize that he might have found out about the deaths of Lily and James Potter and the subsequent demise of his master. However, given the state of his nerves and the serendipitous ringing of his two way mirror to Narcissa, he was distracted by the sound of Narcissa cooing at Draco and Draco screaming. This onslaught on domestic noise made Severus flinch, the barkeep glare, and a nearby drunk snort in his sleep.

“Narcissa, I’ve just found Severus.”

“Lucius, where are you?” She paused, peered closer and shrilly asked, “Are you in a pub?”

“Yes my love, Sev was here, say hi Sev—“ He could see the volatile Black blood activate in the way her eyes narrowed and her voice steadily went up in pitch and volume.

“Why are you in a pub? Do you have any idea how long you’ve been gone? Nothing, NOTHING, is getting him to calm down and meanwhile you—“

“Narcissa, we are on our way.”

“—are in a pub, with your ‘buddy’—“

“Look Narcissa, we are leaving.” He pulled Severus from the barstool and began dragging his protesting friend towards the door.

“—because let me guess, for the first time in your life—“

“See, out the door.”

“—you choose to go along with some mudblood, misogynist—“

“And we’re apparating.”

“—angel of the home notion of female domesticity—“

Lucius dropped his somewhat confounded friend on the hall carpet outside Draco’s nursery and called out, “Narcissa, I’m here!”

The door opened and his sobbing son was placed in his arms. “I am getting some tea. I will also get a sobriety potion for Severus.” Even in her nightgown, with her hair in disarray, Lucius had to admire her grace. His admiration was, however, cut short by his son. Severus, still laid out on the floor, rolled to sitting with a groan. Draco screamed. Lucius sighed.

A cup of tea, a potion and a sitting room later, Severus gave Draco an infant dose of Dreamless Sleep. The distraught boy quickly lost consciousness to the combination of stress and the potion. Lucius and Narcissa sighed (nearly cried) in relief. Lucius hugged the boy to his chest and pat his back comfortingly.

“Now Sev, why were you in a pub?”

At this, Severus’ thin veneer of calm cracked and shattered. “It’s Lily, she’s—,” he chokes on a word and Lucius traded a look with his wife. "They’re dead.” A tear slipped down the young man’s cheek.

“Dead?” Narcissa is the only one not at a loss for words. “And James Potter? And their son? How?”

“Both of them, by the Dark Lord’s hand.”

“What?” Narcissa’s voice is nearly a hiss.

“But you said Dumbledore was going to use Fidelius.”

“He did, and that rat Peter betrayed them.”

Narcissa and Lucius exchanged glances, Severus’ words were awfully close to treason to the Dark Lord. “Severus, you haven’t done anything rash, have you?” Lucius asked hesitantly.

Severus gave Lucius a glare, “I left before Hagrid realized I was there.”

“Hagrid?”

“Rubeus Hagrid, that half-giant, took their son Harry.”

“Albus Dumbledore’s half-giant minion took the Potter heir? Is he another betrayer of the light?” Lucius’ voice nearly broke and jumped an octave.

“And why didn’t the Dark Lord kill the boy?” Narcissa simply looked bemused.

“The Dark Lord was gone when I arrived.” The younger man’s eyebrows drew together. “I- I’m not sure what’s happened.”

“Well in any case, is there a chance you can help up figure out what’s wrong with Draco?” Perhaps it was cold of her to dismiss the Potters, but Narcissa could only continue fueled by tea for so long.

“Did you call a mediwizard or a healer?”

“Of course, Healer Davies said there was nothing the matter.”

“St. Mungo’s?”

“Please, those light supremacist bastards? Did you hear what they did to the Notts?” Young Theodore Nott had nearly died of a muggle strain of pneumonia thanks to their refusal to serve a dark family.

“Did Healer Davies leave his notes?”

“Yes, they’re in the nursery.” With a quick Accio, Lucius soon had the parchments in hand.

Severus grabbed them from him and flipped through. After a couple moments and some back tracking, his dark eyebrows drew together.

“Well?”

“His adrenal levels seem to be abnormally high, but wizarding triage is not as thorough on hormonal imbalances as muggles’.” The Malfoys exchanged a glance. They had known their friend had been dabbling into esoteric potions craft, but muggle healing?

“Did Draco have something he doesn’t usually eat?”

“No.”

How about an injury? No, no, that’d be in here…” The young man looked up through a curtain of hair, his face a mix of slyness and nervousness. “Have you considered the possibility of a soul mate? He may be experiencing something through the Bond.”

The Malfoys were silent. Both of them looked down at the boy in Lucius’ arms.

“You may consider a locating ritual.”

“But they’re supposed to be cherished, a mystery for the finding.”

“And if the other is in an abusive situation or in deathly danger?”

“Perhaps we should give it a day or two.”

Severus nodded, understanding their hesitance in possibly depriving their son of this. Soulmates were rare, two powerful beings destined to meet in their formative years. Two halves of a soul cleaved apart, destined by Magic to return the balance, just from their presence. Finding the other half through phantom touches, what the other half was experiencing during heightened emotional times, was a sacred mystery. There were, of course, rituals and potions to help the process along. “Sacred mystery” wasn’t an excuse for willful neglect or kidnap situations.

Severus fell to darker thoughts, remembering Lily’s lifeless face, even James, hated and once so full of life, had been a shock to his system. And where was the youngest Potter now? Severus had made a vow, not magically binding, to protect Lily’s son. Upon reconciliation with Lily, he had had a few occasions in the last year to meet (play) with the baby. He had grown passably fond on the little gremlin. Surely he was safe with that horrible godfather of his.

But why had Rubeus Hagrid removed him? How had he even known that he needed extracting?

Too many questions. He didn’t like it. Looking to his godson and his friends, he quietly asked, “May I make use of your scrying room?”

Lucius quirked an eyebrow, but was too tired to inquire further and instead just nodded. “You should make use of your usual quarters too. I think we shall retire for the night. Day. Ugh.”

Severus nodded and left the Malfoys to their sitting room.

Lucius looked up to Narcissa, “My dear, shall we?”

His wife nodded. “We will be investigating further.”

Given the choice between an argument and blessed sleep, Lucius acquiesced.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A ritual and a destination.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we are again, the next bit. I wrote this between attempting no find a non-fatal method of using my favorite Socrates reference to bandy about (hemlock poisoning, so handy) and trying to optimize Eratosthenes Sieve (ahh primes <3). Point is, my ritual got a bit thinky.  
> Enjoy,  
> All love,  
> ace.

The bouts of screaming and inconsolable pain did continue.

And the Malfoys and Severus had little time to spare for much else besides researching to find Draco’s soulmate, caring for Draco, and worrying about the potential threat of hearings.

Severus also had the added troubles of trying to scry for young Harry, the Potter child. Sirius Black, heir to the house of Black, was sent to Azkaban with no trial nor much evidence, really, and as such, that possible lead lead to a dead end.

On the matter of finding Draco’s soulmate, no ritual, spell, potion, charm, or even ‘red string of fate’ revealed any clue as to the location, identity, or even well-being of the mysterious child. The researching threesome only knew that the child did, in fact, exist and that something had changed to a far, far worse state on that fateful Halloween night.

* * *

It was several days before Imbolc and after three grueling months of stress and worry for Draco and his soulmate, neither of the three were feeling remotely in the mood for the festivities. Draco’s ‘episodes’, as they’d taken to calling them, had grown oftener and oftener in the last fortnight.

Imbolc provided a chance though. Imbolc brought with it the celebration of spring, of cleansing and protection and the first milking of the ewes. The nature of the day set a strong basis for a ritual that Severus had constructed from several documents on more subjects than Lucius cared to think about. Using the purity and cleansing, and the intention to protect, and multiple other things that Severus rambled on about after Lucius had stopped listening, the young man hoped to bypass the wards keeping the child hidden from them in whatever horrible environment he was in.

Lucius was losing hope in the matter entirely. If not for Narcissa’s hopeful looks every time one of them found a promising passage, he’d likely have long ago given up. He feared her growing attachment to the yet unknown child. At night sometimes she would wax poetic about how to raise a set of soulmates, how best not to ruin a potential match, or even just how to help the poor thing heal. And yet, given Severus and Narcissa’s determination to make the oncoming Imbolc’s ritual work, he felt occasional bursts of gumption, moments of righteousness.

Lucius was a pessimist. He had long come to terms with the fact. He was also not particularly scholarly. He did not learn for the sake of learning like his wife and best friend, but rather to better himself, his cause, or his standing. Lucius was, however, a natural politician. He prided himself as a politician. And so, he spun cover stories for himself and Severus to protect them from public ire and Azkaban. By reflecting the strongest Imperius he could muster on himself (Narcissa has looked at him strangely when, obviously Imperio-addled he had refused to stop reading the morning paper) and Obliviating himself (when he couldn’t remember what wine they had had with dinner the day before, Severus had sighed and settled for a fine Tempranillo the next night) he created a plausible alias for any actions he allegedly had done. He had the same planned for Severus, should an Auror come sniffing.

Severus brought Lucius out of his plotting with a series of questions he had asked at least five times just that day. “Lucius, you got everything on that list right?”

“Yes.”

“Ashwinder eggs?”

“Yes.”

“Betony?”

“Yes.”

“Valerian?”

“Yes.”

And on the ritual and potion ingredients went.

Several days later found them and a napping Draco in the ritual room. It was Imbolc and the time had come. Severus was taking the lead, seeing as he had constructed the ritual. Draco went in the very center on an indented mound of stone. The three adults took each other's hands in a circle around him. There was a cup of some sweet smelling potion by Severus’ right knee and an enclosing ritual circle in Greek letters around them all. (“Greek to work around the doubtless Latin keeping them hidden from us. Idiots.” Severus had cooed to Draco on one sleepless night.)

Lucius looked into Narcissa’s face, she raised her gaze from Draco and caught his eye, a grin, worn, but real, crossed her face. They both looked to Severus, and, both catching his attention, he nodded and began.

Severus chanted in Greek, then in Arabic, then a guttural language that Lucius couldn’t place. The cup began to bubble over, spilling purposefully into a circle around Draco. Severus began to repeat the chant, tone changing from invocation to mantra. The liquid began to work its way inwards in a series of strange web-like patterns. When the first tendril made contact with the boy’s skin, it changed color, swirling from a minty green to a silvery blue. It’s webs continued until they completely covered him. A final point of strands converged over Draco’s chest and shone with silvery light.

The whole array rose up as a flat circular plane of crisscrossing strands. And it was at that moment that Draco woke up and Lucius realized that it was a map. A map of somewhere muggle, with its horribly militaristic little rows and tight plots of land. The shining silver point pulsed once and several things happened all at the same time. Draco began to scream, a flat piece of parchment appeared under the suspended liquid map, and Severus broke the circle, resulting in the map falling into the parchment. Severus grabbed the map, Lucius grabbed his son, and Narcissa grabbed a blanket, which they had stashed for Draco before hand.

Later, once Draco had calmed down enough to take a minimal amount of Dreamless Sleep, the three adults pored over the parchment. Nothing was labeled, but it was clear that it was some sort of suburb on the edges of a city. Rather, this was clear to the muggle savvy Severus, not to Lucius and Narcissa.

“Do you have maps of muggle cities in Britain?”

“Muggle cities?”

“This is clearly a map, and most wizarding folks do not choose to live in such close proximity to each other.”

Lucius leaned closer and began to parse the design for himself. If each square or squiggly shape were a property, they were awfully small properties.

“I’m sure we have a self updating one in the map room.” Of course Narcissa would remember that there was a map room in the manor before he did, he had no need for maps when a floo took the navigating out of things.

Narcissa and Severus hurried off with the map, leaving Draco in Lucius’ care. He swaddled his son, though he was getting a bit old for swaddling, and as he sedately followed their voices, cuddled him close. Draco slowly woke and cooed up at his father. It seemed that aside from the ritual, it was a good day for Draco and his soulmate. Lucius slowed his pace, determined to enjoy the good day his son was having. Draco was happily chewing on his index finger and looking adoringly up at Lucius. Excited murmurs reached his ears and when he was in the doorway, Severus and Narcissa met his gaze with matching grins. Their faces looked younger than they had for months.

“What have you found?”

“We think we’ve found their location. It’s one of the first houses on a Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey. We can go today, too!”

After months of no luck, dead ends, and obscured readings, Lucius froze at the news that they shared. “We know where Draco’s soulmate is?”

“Yes!”

Narcissa approached her stunned husband. She hugged him and Draco. “We’ve done it, my loves, now let us go and make things right for our little Dragon.”

Lucius nodded, and slowly felt a smile split his face. “Yes. Time to avenge our son’s soulmate.” He felt just a little bit feral, a blood lust he had never felt before rose within him. He hefted Draco on his shoulder. As the boy began mouthing at his hair, he asked, “What is the nearest floo point?”

Severus, poring over the maps again, had the answer, “Looks like the local library, Edgestone Public Library is the nearest. It’s only about a half a kilometer away. I recall one of Dumbledore’s minions, a Mrs. Figg, living quite nearby.”

Lucius and Narcissa exchanged a glance at this, Severus had come clean about his betrayal, and really the Malfoy’s weren’t in that much better standing, but the reminder was still surprising.

“Let’s go then.” Narcissa turned to him, “Lucius, are you planning on bringing Draco?”

“Well we have to be able to identify his soulmate right?” Severus and Narcissa exchanged glances.

Narcissa slowly replied, “It may not be very hard to, dear, given what we can assume from Draco’s outbursts.”

“Just in case.”

Lucius turned to the fireplace, which like all fireplaces in the manor, was attached to the floo network in a uni-directional manner. “Where to?”

“Edgestone Public Library, Little Whinging.”

Lucius threw his powder into the fire and was soon spinning across the kingdom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ##Is anyone else really, really annoyed by Voldemort's wand's _Priori Incantatem_? Where's his AK at Harry? How on earth did Mr. Evil there manage to destroy himself and his physical body and then pop in and say, "Oh, by the way, I'm offing the two of you suckers too!" Troubles in Dearland, here. And _where_ on earth does Hagrid take Harry for those twenty four hours between Voldemort's destruction, and the first chapter of Philosopher's Stone???  
>  Okay, ace out, I'll stop complaining.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco's soulmate is found.

When he arrived, it was in a cramped little back room of a library. It was such an overwhelmingly muggle sort of place, he was surprised it even had a fireplace. It soon flared green and let his wife and then friend through.

A woman entered the room pushing a cart of books. “Oh! What are you—“

Severus sent a mild Confundus as her. “How may we leave?”

“The door, that door.” She gestured at the emergency exit on one side of the fireplace. They swept through the door, pausing when an alarm began to blare.

Shrugging, Lucius led the way out and in the direction of Privet Drive, according to the map.

It took them only a couple of minutes to arrive at the corner. It was here that Draco stirred in Lucius’ arms. At first Lucius had a moment of hope that perhaps Draco could sense his soulmate, instead he gave hiccupping inhale that meant one of his episodes was imminent. Hearing this, all three began to make their way towards the first of the horrifyingly identical houses. They were on the steps of the first one on their side, a Number 2, when they drew to a halt. One house down, Number 4, was home to someone shouting. It was an angry sound. The sound of violence. As Draco began to whimper, the three hurried across the lawn and the intervening low brick wall and approached Number 4.

As Narcissa knocked on the door, there was the sound of flesh hitting flesh and Draco began to wail. The door blew off its hinges and into several chunks of wood, though Lucius’ wand remained in his pocket. Severus and Narcissa glanced at him with a small amount of surprise before focusing on the other side of the new ingress.

A toddler, smaller than Draco, lay on the floor, bleeding. Over him was a man who rather resembled a very large, round tomato. The man had his fist upraised but, along with the boy, was frozen looking at the door with something between shock and awe.

Lucius knew in this moment a truth. He absolutely had no doubt that this man, this monster was the cause of Draco’s pain. And it was in this moment, making eye contact with the boy’s vivid green eyes, that all the love and sympathy and fear and protectiveness that Narcissa had felt that he hadn’t understood came rushing into his cold Slytherin heart. This boy was in one way or another a Malfoy, and had been since the day he and Draco had felt something through their soulmate bond. The onslaught of emotions doubled, tripled his rage until his long practiced control shattered.

The man’s beet colored face faded and lost all color and became white then green. He kicked the boy into a closet and Draco gave out a great wail.

No man, no person nor thing hurt his family and lived. Lucius took a short step forward and a wave of power whipped out with his motion. All he was able to utter was a growling “You.”

The man’s face contorted and his left hand began to twitch. Sweat dripped down his face and he started to hyperventilate. As his lips turned faintly blue, he took a step backwards and wavered for a few seconds. When blood began to leak from his nose he fell backwards. With one final twitch of his hand, he grew still and the magicals felt the cold whisper that meant death.

Lucius felt the gaze of his wife and friend fall onto him.

“Lucius. Are you… are you okay?”

Lucius did not answer, but handed Draco off to Narcissa and stepped around the dead man towards the cupboard under the stairs.

Inside, the boy was shivering and bleeding and looking up at Lucius with big green fear filled eyes. The toddler’s fear dissipated some of the rage he still felt, but it festered under his breastbone, waiting. He kneeled down and felt Narcissa and Severus come up behind him. The sight of two more adults made the child cringe and turn his face away.

“Hello, I am Lucius Malfoy, what’s your name?”

He only whimpered in response.

“With me are Narcissa Malfoy, Severus Snape, and my son, Draco Malfoy. Can you come out so we may heal you?”

The boy curled into himself more tightly. A door opened upstairs. The boy cringed even more.

“Vernon? What were those noises?” A shrill voice, footsteps, and, “Vernon—oh my—the door—Vernon?” Her voice crescendoed until she was at the top of the stairs.

All three looked up, but it was Severus who exclaimed, “Petunia?!”

Petunia screeched, “No! What are you doing here? Where is Vernon? Why are you freaks here?”

At the words ‘freaks’ Harry let out a small groan. Petunia caught sight of her husband on the floor, empty dead eyes staring up at her, and began to scream.

A small wave of magic from Lucius had her in a dead faint and she tipped headlong down the stairs. None of the three magicals spared an effort to cushion her fall and she landed crumpled at the bottom.

The boy was whimpering now, face still in his ragged, stained blanket. Severus pushed forward, “Harry? Is that you, Harry?”

The boy shivered but turned to face Severus. Severus reached in and picked up the boy who let out a string of “No no no” and screwed his eyes shut.

Severus sat back on the floor, between Lucius and Narcissa and rocked him, murmuring assurances of safety. Draco’s eyes were fixed on the small boy and Lucius and Narcissa subtly healed the cuts and bruises they could see. Lucius considered who the boy, this Harry, could be, and realized that he could very likely be the boy-who-lived. In pureblood circles it was thought that this boy could be a rallying point for a more politically liberal reformation of the muggle influenced corruption that was currently infecting their political systems, society, economy and culture. The Light saw him as a golden child, to be worshipped without thought to the fact that he was just a child. Lucius would be damned before he let his family be used. Besides, while he might not have Malfoy blood, the boy's grandmother was a Black, and Blacks were no more tools than Malfoys.

The boy finally calmed enough that when Severus hefted him closer on his lap, facing him, he only clutched very tightly at the man’s robes. Draco, still fascinated, reached out and put a hand on his small bony shoulder. At first, the boy cringed at the contact, but as pure light entwined them, he raised his eyes to Draco.

Draco, somewhat breaking the moment of mutual awe, said his new favorite word: “Mine.” The boy did not whimper nor cringe, which, all things considered, probably meant something good.

As they left, Severus called the muggle aurors on the tellyphone and complained of screaming at Number 4, Privet Drive. Judging by the pictures on the mantle, there was another child living in the house, and Severus assured them that the aurors would take care of him. Since the muggles’ deaths were easy enough to explain away as natural cause and a simple fall, they simply left, after a quick Reparo to the door.

As they walked up the drive to Malfoy Manor, Severus stated, “I shall raise him and he shall be as he will, without the manipulations or abuses of any who would try. I will keep him safe and I shall love him as my own.”

A whisper of magic passed through the air. “So mote it be.” Murmured Lucius and Narcissa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Yep so this is the actual end of this wee arc. I'll be transcribing the post discovery bits soonish, I've got four bits to that. Spoiler alert, it's dealing with the wizarding world. A nice distraction from the odious states of our political landscapes, I suppose...  
> Happy New Year,   
> ace.


	4. Epilogue part one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The promised aftermath.

A week had passed since Lucius, Narcissa, and Severus had saved young Harry from his muggle relatives. Lucius had been bringing Draco to Severus' house every day while Narcissa did some of the bureaucratic wrangling that came with being of the owning class. Lucius had been trying to convince Severus to move to a little house that was on Malfoy lands instead of the muggle hovel he inhabited. Given that Severus himself had professed to hating the place, Lucius simply couldn't figure out what Severus' hang-up might be.

Draco brought him out of his musings with a "Go, go, go, mine!" Lucius smiled and picked him up. Narcissa smiled at them as well.

"Do you think you'll be able to convince him this time?"

"Draco to call Harry by his proper name, not likely. Severus... I don't understand why he persists in refusing."

"Perhaps invite him over, so he can see the cottage for himself."

Lucius hummed in agreement. "That!" Draco pointed at the fireplace.

"Very well," said Lucius, "it seems that the summons grow stronger." Narcissa smiled and Draco let out an excited giggle.

When the two Malfoys exited the floo at Spinner's End, a much different, though equally domestic, scene greeted them. Severus was attempting to get young Harry to drink a potion. There were any number that he had been prescribed and all of them tasted vile. Though Harry had yet to truly assert himself after three months of the muggles' care, he did pull the sort of thing he was doing now. He had his face buried in Severus' robes and was asking "Why?" the answer to which he didn't necessarily understand.

"Because, if one takes a nihilist view, as you are, since there is no true meaning to the universe, you may as well take your potion if only to ward off the oncoming inevitability of a contrived end."

"Why?"

Draco's pleased "Mine!" broke off Severus' dangerously existential tangent. The boy in his lap turned with a blinding smile and responded with a pleased, "Day-co!"

For a moment, Lucius lamented the fact that his progeny has having such a difficult time grasping names over pronouns.

Severus held fast to his wriggling charge and resorted to his most underhanded tactic yet. "Only if you take your potion."

To no one's surprise but Severus', it worked.

Soon Harry was only clinging with one hand to the end of Severus' robe, giving him a good two feet of leeway away from Severus. The boys played with a set of block shaped glowing bubbles. The two men, meanwhile, discussed the younger boy.

“He refuses to let me alone more than five minutes at a time.”

“Unless one of us is around.”

“That doesn’t change the problem.”

“But it is understandable, and it’s only been a week.”

“I know, but I worry about him.”

“Also understandable.”

“I haven’t gotten to brew or work on my mastery project in months and I haven’t truly slept in longer. How do you and Narcissa manage?”

“We have each other, you, and a small army of house elves to share the load with.”

Severus spared a smile for him.

“How’s he been when Draco’s away?”

“He’s marginally more fussy and asks for ‘Dayco’ or ‘mine’ every half hour, at the very least.”

“Draco’s the same, though I’d put him at every two minutes and he refuses to learn Harry’s name.”

Severus smiled at that.

“Look, Severus, you need to go to Gringott’s some time soon and get irrefutable custody. I can only do so much at the ministry once they find out that his guardians are dead.”

Severus frowned. “I know. It’s just he gets overwhelmed so easily by other people.”

“You could let him stay with us. If you’d just look at the cottage—“

“Lucius, you’ve done so much, and I really do appreciate it, but I want to raise Harry and give him a childhood that's not shadowed by his soulmate and any destiny he might have.

“Just come see it. And if we go in the coming week, Narcissa or I can stay with the boys at the manor while you attend to matters at Gringott’s. And once that’s done, we can do dinner or tea.”

“I hardly think it will take till dinner.” A wave of smugness washed over Lucius. If Severus could only see the cottage, it’d be a done deal.

Harry let out a loud giggle, drawing the men’s attention. He was holding Severus’ robe with one hand and with the other, and Draco, was knocking apart the base of the tower they had made and each successive base that floated down to replace it. Severus smiled softly down at him and, once the tower was thoroughly demolished, the boy smiled up at Severus. He hugged his leg, overbalanced, and fell forward. Severus was quick to catch him and swung him up. By the smile on the usually dour young man’s face, Lucius knew that he would do the best thing for his young charge. And if the best thing happened to include moving onto Malfoy land… Well.

Draco demanded up, and the boys batted bubbles back and forth. “How about Monday?”

Severus sighed, “So soon?”

“Better to get as much done before it makes the news.”

Severus grunted in response, making Harry giggle. After a few moments, he confirmed, “Very well, we’ll floo there at ten.” And then mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like, “Dinner, my arse.”

“If you’d like to visit over the weekend, it’ll give the boys a chance to play in a different environment.” Perhaps Lucius had tried to hard in getting Severus and Harry behind Malfoy wards as soon as possible.

Severus’ face went through several very un-Slytherin expressions before settling on one of amused acceptance.

“I’m sure you’ll go and crow to Narcissa about your success in getting the two of us over there so soon.”

“Indeed I shall. We’ll have breakfast ready at nine tomorrow.” Severus rolled his eyes.

The next morning, Narcissa and Lucius were woken up by an eager Draco demanding, “Mine, mine mine mine!”

Lucius found himself only capable of grumbling, but Narcissa managed monosyllables. “Not yet, dear.” Before she turned her face into Lucius’ shoulder.

Draco threw himself onto their legs, “Please, mum, please, dad?”

“Go back to sleep, Dragon. It’s a couple hours yet.”

“No! Now!”

“It’s your turn to deal with him.” Narcissa murmured into his side.

Lucius grumbled some more. “Is everything ready in your suite for their arrival?” He prayed to mother magic herself that this would provide ample enough distraction.

“My dragons!” The boy jumped for the side of the bed. On his way he not only trod on Lucius’ stomach, but also managed to nearly fall off the side. Which, Lucius thought as he cast a cushioning charm, would be horribly ironic given the location of Draco’s conception.

When a decent hour had rolled around, later than 5 in the morning, the Malfoys were awake and dressed. Draco sullenly kicked the seat he was on. “When mine?”

“They’ll come when they come.”

“Now!”

“Lucius, why don’t you call Severus.”

“Fine, fine.” As Lucius approached the floo-ing fireplace—no Malfoy kneeled—it began to sound the incoming tone.

Lucius flicked his wand and Severus’ face appeared in the flames. “Lucius, excellent. Is Draco there?”

Draco sat up at the sound of his name.

“Yes what’s wrong?”

“Harry is…he had a nightmare, could he speak to Draco?”

Draco was up in Lucius’ lap and shoving his face towards the fire before Lucius could answer.

“Mine? My Harry?”

Harry’s face appeared and he appeared to be trying to reach through the fire. Ash painted tears on his fiery face. He was obviously sobbing, but made no noise.

“Sev? Sev are you still there?”

“My Draco, please,” Harry finally cried out as he was pulled away from the fireplace.

Severus’ face appeared.

“Severus, why don’t you two come through?”

“Just give us a second, thank you, Lucius.”

Harry was pulled further back, much to his ire, which he let be known with a final “Nooo!” before the fire went orange once again.

Lucius pulled Draco back. The boy looked somewhat shell-shocked. “Sick?” He looked close to tears as Narcissa joined them on the settee.

“No love, he’s just upset. You know when you have a bad dream?” The boy cringed and nodded. “He’s just had one too.”

Draco frowned, “Hurt?”

“No, Dragon, he’s just afraid.” Draco buried his face in his father’s chest. “He’ll be here soon and you can help him feel better, right?”

Draco nodded and muttered, “Want mine.”

“And maybe, perhaps you could try calling him by his name again? Harry?”

Draco nodded up at his mother, showing perfect understanding. “Mine.”

Blacks. Lucius thought. More stubborn than a scorned hippogriff.

In no time at all, the floo ward was chiming again, and spat out Severus and his charge. Harry squirmed in Severus’ arms until he was let down. He ran to Draco and the two tumbled to the floor. Draco pet Harry’s hair while the boy snuggled into him. Lucius and Narcissa looked to Severus.

“Nightmare.” Severus said by way of explanation. He sighed, and set his bag and himself onto an adjacent chair. Lucius frowned, he wished there was some way to help the boy recover. Once Harry was properly adopted, he’d make sure the boy had some sessions with a mind healer at the very least.

Lucius got up and scooped the two of them up, a giggle from Draco and a quiet noise of protest from Harry, and carried them to the breakfasting room. He set them down on a short couch. Harry used this as an opportunity to pull Draco even closer.

“Severus, have you talked to a healer yet about his mind?”

“No, I’ve just been trying to reassure him that he’s safe and keep him from hiding in my potions lab.”

“Perhaps after Gringott’s…”

Severus gave a huff of acquiescence. The three of them watched the boys on their couch. When Harry’s grip loosened and he slowly relaxed, Narcissa suggested they eat breakfast. At some prompting from Lucius, Draco began listing places he wanted to show Harry on the Malfoy property. At his mention of the cottage, Lucius let his lips quirk in smug satisfaction. Severus gave him a dirty look but was distracted by plying the boy with nutrient potions before they set off for Draco’s rooms.

Lucius began outlining his plans for their visit to Gringott’s as they slowly made their way after the boys.

In Draco’s room, he was, predictably, showing Harry his collection of animated stuffed dragons. The ironbelly and the ridgeback were playing at Draco’s feet. The horntail was nuzzling Harry and chasing after Harry’s stuffed snake. A stuffed snake, which not only should still be at home, but was also usually quite inanimate, and was hissing quite convincingly. The adults exchanged looks.

“Did Harry do that?” Narcissa broke their stunned silence.

And then, Harry spoke to the snake. Spoke in its language.

Lucius gripped the wall with surprise. “A parselmouth?” he hissed.

Severus looked likely to faint. Lucius put a hand on his shoulder. “We must make sure Dumbledore never gets his hands on this boy.”

Both Severus and Narcissa nodded in agreement.

It wasn’t until they were strolling through the gardens that the full extent of Harry’s Parsel abilities became clear. He found first a garden snake and then a set of all manner of poisonous and harmless snakes, numbering seven. The snakes draped themselves on their new scaleless companions. When Draco demanded that the snakes talk to him too, Harry gave the blond such a cute bitch face that all three adults began to giggle uncontrollably. That is, until a snake spoke up and Harry translated it as an offer to teach Draco.

Only Severus kept laughing at the utter shock on the elder Malfoy’s faces.

The boys collected a couple more snakes; apparently the word was out. And Harry translated their salutations as best as an eighteen month old could.

After wandering to a few gazebos and exciting garden features, Draco finally led them to the cottage. On one side was a less manicured orchard. On the plot of land surrounding the cottage, the gardens were wilder than the rest of the grounds. Lucius knew for a fact that many of the plants were potions ingredients. He also knew that Severus would notice.

“A house!” Harry crowed, amused by it’s existence in the gardens.

“Would you like to go inside?” Narcissa asked. Severus gave both smirking Malfoys a fond glare.

Harry gave Narcissa a calculating look. “Snakes?”

“You can bring your snakes.” Harry’s smile was answer enough.

The five of them made their way into the cottage. It was larger than Spinner’s End and had two living floors and a basement, despite being called a cottage. The lower level was sparsely furnished, only a long couch and an empty bookshelf in the parlor. A dining table and chairs in the dining room and a wooden chop block in the kitchen. The walls were painted a delicate shade of green, one Narcissa knew Severus favored. The parlor window framed the back of Malfoy Manor in the distance and the grounds prettily. While the kitchen window had a wilder view of the orchards and, deeper, the wild grove behind it. Upstairs there were three bedrooms and a large bathroom.

In one of the bedrooms was a set of adult sized furniture, a four-poster, a desk, and a love seat in front of the fireplace. In another was a child-sized four-poster with an adult sized armchair next to it; there was also a child-sized desk. A small set of armchairs and a rocking chair were set up around the fireplace. The mantle was decorated with faeries and woodland mythical creatures, which slowly shifted, creating scenes depicting various magical and muggle stories.

This room Lucius had saved for last. It was connected to Severus’ room by an en-suite door, but mostly Lucius was relying on the excitement in Harry’s eyes when he turned up to his guardian. He pointed to a line of dancing nymphs and asked, “Titania?”

Severus smiled, “Very good Harry.”

Harry grinned and hugged his leg before looking up with even bigger eyes, “Whose room?” Lucius allowed himself to mentally hum a victory march and pat himself on the back. His victory was complete.

“No one lives here right now, dear.” Narcissa answered.

Harry looked back up to Severus, then asked, “Gardens?” Severus smiled and nodded, scooping up the boy, snakes and all.

Once outside, Harry and Draco jumped at the chance to play with the snakes and run about the bushes and plants.

Lucius sat at one of the benches in the garden.

The younger man looked up towards the Manor, “It’s not too close to the Manor.”

“It’s not.” Lucius smiled.

“It’s also larger than your house and close to the Malfoy potions labs and has a warded basement. Not to mention it’s on some of the most heavily warded property in Britain and far, far away from muggles.”

“It’s basically perfect. I know, I know, you both know you’ve won this, no need to be a pair of bores.”

“I can have a house elf move your things once you’ve talked to Harry.”

Severus shot the smug man and his smirking wife a glare. He looked around the garden, they could hear the boy’s giggles and footsteps, but they were not immediately visible. When Severus made to rise, Lucius held him back, “Let them play.”

A couple hours later found a somewhat more frantic Lucius. The boys had disappeared into the orchard and no matter how they meandered, they had not caught sight of them. Severus was equally frantic, but Narcissa seemed calmer.

It was when she suggested they use the tracking spells all three had on their charges that Lucius once again thanked the powers that be that he was blessed with a witch both wise and beautiful for a wife.

Following the charms, they made their way through the orchard and into the wilder part of the Malfoy lands. Under a particularly gnarled old cherry tree, the two boys lay nestled in a nook in the roots, deep asleep. Before either man could approach, Narcissa murmured, “Accio Camera.”

Needless to say, after being plied with food and the plan to move into the cottage, Harry was more exuberant than Severus had seen him since he was a baby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. I got distracted by a personal lit project, but I'm finally transcribing the end. I had forgotten how much I'd written on buses/trains/planes, turns out my awful cursive plus a wet fountain pen that I favor equals a foreign alphabet, whodathunk? XD  
> I was also distracted by our ridiculous political... climate. Both US & planet wide, good grief!  
> On that note, I've started another fic riffing off of politics. Yes, someone needs to stop me. It's also Harry/Draco, but instead of being wee babies, they are older. Severus also plays a role as grumpmeister. Check it out, it's called Hæfen.  
> All the best,  
> Ace.
> 
> (Edit: 30 Dec 17  
> I've scrapped the final chapter because as much as I can talk about disliking Dumbledore all day, I find that it is a bit too sarcastic for the tone of this work. I know, me, sarcastic, who'd'a'thunk.  
> Cheers,  
> Ace)


End file.
